Education and Health 

About: Education and Health is an academic journal published by Schools Health Education Unit. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Curriculum & Health care. It has an ISSN identifier of 0265-1602. Over the lifetime, 729 publications have been published receiving 15260 citations. The journal is also known as: E & H.

Study design in qualitative research--2: Sampling and data collection strategies.

Abstract: In two prior papers in our series on qualitative research (Frankel & Devers (2000a, 2000b) Qualitative research: a consumer's guide, Education for Health, 13, 113-123; Frankel & Devers (2000) Study design in qualitative research—1: developing research questions and assessing research needs, Education for Health, 13, 251-261), we examine two critical issues in qualitative research design: sampling, including identifying and negotiating access to research sites and subjects, and data collection and management We describe these two key steps in the qualitative research design process, discuss challenges that often emerge when pursuing these steps, and provide guidelines for addressing them Qualitative research most often uses "purposive," rather than random, sampling strategies A good understanding of these sampling strategies and why they are used is central to designing a credible qualitative study In addition, given the real-world context in which most qualitative research is carried out, identifying and negotiating access to research sites and subjects are critical parts of the process We also provide suggestions for developing and maintaining productive and mutually satisfying research relationships with sites and subjects Finally, data collection and management are often neglected subjects in qualitative research We offer practical advice on how to collect and manage qualitative data, including factors to consider when deciding how struc- tured the data collection process should be, the pros and cons of audio- and/or videotaping compared with note-taking, and tips for writing up eeld notes and document management A forthcoming, enal paper in the series will focus on qualitative data analysis and the publication of qualitative research results

Students, stress and coping strategies: a case of Pakistani medical school.

Abstract: Objective: Assess the perception of stress amongst medical students and their coping strategies. Methodology/Study design: A cross sectional study using a semi-structured self administered questionnaire was carried out over four weeks, using a small sample of students of all categories and classes of a medical college. Results: A total of 264 students out of 300 (88%) filled in the questionnaire. Inability to cope, helplessness, increased psychological pressure, mental tension and too much workload are 'stress factors' for students. A considerable majority ( 4 90%) think that they have been stressed at one time or another. Ninety-four per cent of males have experienced stress. The senior students of the fourth and final year feel more stressed (95% and 98% respectively). Low moods, inability to concentrate, loss of temper are most common symptoms. Females report more symptoms. Academics and exams are the most powerful stressors. Sports, music, hanging out with friends, sleeping or going into isolation are various coping mechanisms. Stress can affect the academic performance. If needed, students prefer to talk to a peer. They demand more recreational activities on campus, revised schedule of academics and exams, better counselling facilities and improvement in student-teacher relationship. Conclusion: The prevalence of perceived stress seems to be high among medical students, which tends to affect not only their academic performances but also all aspects of health. Review of academics and exam schedules, more leisure time activities, better interaction with the faculty and proper guidance, advisory services and peer counselling at the campus could do a lot to reduce the stress.

Students' perceptions of educational environment: a comparison of academic achievers and under-achievers at kasturba medical college, India.

Abstract: Context No country, least of all poorly resourced countries such as India, can afford to lose too many medical students in their undergraduate years It would be useful to have an instrument to identify those students who are vulnerable to academic failure at this level of training and to identify the features of the educational environment that they perceive differently from students who are succeeding academically in order to design intervention strategies Gender differences in perceptions of the educational environment might well emerge in particular academic or cultural contexts, with particular curricula The present study was motivated by this concern and focused on comparisons between academic achievers and under-achievers and male and female students of Kasturba Medical College, India Objectives (1) To compare the perceptions of the educational environment of academic achievers and under-achievers and to identify problem areas that should be remediated (2) To identify whether there is any gender difference in the perceptions Methods The Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM) was administered to 508 medical students studying in the clinical years at the Kasturba Medical College in India Item as well as scale scores were compared between academic achievers and under-achievers Findings Overall sample of the present study rated educational environment in this institution as average The overall mean DREEM score was significantly higher for academic achievers Compared to under-achievers, academic achievers scored significantly higher on perceptions regarding teachers, academic atmosphere and social self-perceptions In addition to this, the overall rating (total DREEM score) of female students was significantly less compared to males in the academically vulnerable group Conclusions Perceptions of poor performers are significantly different from those of better performers in the same institution More importance should be given to the perceptions of students to improve the educational environment, as perceptions are associated positively with learning outcome, learning approach and attitude toward studying Use of the DREEM as a monitoring tool might permit timely interventions to remediate problematic educational environments